Iran's parliament speaker wraps up Iraq tour with visits to Karbala and Najaf

BAGHDAD, Iraq — Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf began a three-day official visit to Iraq on Wednesday, arriving in Baghdad with a high-level delegation. He was received at Baghdad International Airport by Iraqi First Deputy Speaker Adnan Fayhan, and the two parliamentary delegations held talks followed by a bilateral meeting between the two speakers. Ghalibaf met Iraqi President Nechirvan Barzani at the presidential palace later the same day. The Iranian delegation also held meetings with the Iraqi Cabinet and with the Coordination Framework bloc in the presence of Prime Minister Ali Falih al-Zaydi. On Thursday morning, Ghalibaf held separate meetings with Supreme Judicial Council head Fayeq Zaidan and National Security Advisor Qasim al-Araji before traveling from Baghdad to Karbala. In Karbala, Ghalibaf attended ceremonies marking the 40th day since the death of former Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and met with the custodians of the Hussein and Abbas shrines. The visit is scheduled to conclude on Friday in Najaf, where Ghalibaf is expected to visit the tomb of former Popular Mobilization Forces deputy chief Abu Mahdi al-Muhandis and meet with officials of the Imam Ali Shrine.